When adding a new wrinkle to Cattaraugus County’s Dream It Do It program, which teaches middle and high school students about manufacturing skills, the coordinator will be looking to a 25-year-old grade school program sponsored by Cutco Cutlery.

“This is an excellent program,” said Evelyn Sabina, Dream It Do It coordinator.

She described it as a pipeline for STEM careers related to advanced manufacturing. While researching ways to integrate the program to younger students, she came upon the 25-year-old Partners in Education program at East View Elementary School in Olean.

“I’m hoping Dream It Do It can use this as a model at other schools, as it’s a true partnership between a manufacturer and a school,” Sabina said.

Among the goals established early on was working with students to improve academic performance. Currently, seven Cutco employees donate an hour here or there, working with teachers who have identified what level of individual attention or group mentoring the students need.

“The tutors do independent research on students’ interest, and some students are truly gifted, but there’s programming here for them,” said East View Principal John White.

Sabina said that when working with the youngsters, the approach isn’t to let them know that jobs as machinists or engineers are in their future. She said the interactions and results are subtle.

“Things like soft skills and character building, and they’re learning who Cutco is, a company right here in their backyard,” she said.

For years, Cutco has sponsored a pizza party for East View students who demonstrate character traits taught at the school. Keenan and his colleagues often address the 140 students about the importance of working together while stressing the character trait.

The tutors, Keenan said, tend to return to Cutco more energized after interacting with the kids.

“When they leave for an hour, they always come back ready and motivated,” he said. “And that works wonderfully for us. Once they start talking about their experience to fellow workers, it’s infectious. It’s something that’s not measureable, but it’s there.”

Sabina said that teachers from around the area will meet in Olean Aug. 4-7, to tour eight companies, including Cutco, and learn about manufacturing as part of Dream It Do It’s summer teacher work experience program. There, she said, Keenan will talk about Partners in Education.

Dream It Do It doesn’t typically offer the kind of hands-on, employee-in-the-classroom approach that Cutco and East View have created and sustained over the years.

But Sabina wants to see if more companies would explore doing so as part of the initiative, which has introduced about 4,000 area students to advanced manufacturing opportunities.

Sabina plans to meet with teachers from Cattaraugus County and Pennsylvania this summer, to see if some of what Cutco and East View are doing can be incorporated into existing Dream It Do It programs.

“This is something that if other schools and businesses hear about, they may want to participate,” she said.